♫♫♫♫♫♫♫

Jungkook freezes with his hand on the knob as Taehyung peers back at him. He decides to pretend Tae isn't even there, and rattles the door handle furiously as if more force would get it open. As he grows more and more desperate to get away from this demon, Tae just watches him with a pitiful look on his face. "It's no use."

Taehyung clears his throat when Jungkook finally ceases his wild assault on the door. "we just have to wait it out. Jimin will realize I've been gone too long and come help us in no time." Jungkook relaxes and retires to a corner of the room with his back turned to Taehyung. The silence is crawling on Taehyung's skin like a swarm of scorpions, and the temptation to pick his brain is overwhelming. "Can we talk?"

"No." Jungkook doesn't turn around or move in the slightest.

Taehyung remains silent for a few more minutes before it's chewing him up again, digesting him and consuming him whole. "Did you know that lavender grows best during the dry season? T-That.." Taehyung stutters with his words. His heart hurts and he knows Jungkook isn't listening at all, but he wants to spill his emotions on the floor and leave them for Jungkook to see. "Don't you think that's amazing? Out of such a dry, sparse environment, something so beautiful can grow and flourish. I think...I think that represents us. It's hard for us right now, but we could be lavender too, Kookie--"

"Us? You do realize I can't stomach being the same room as you, right? I'm only here because I lost the key. I'm not obligated to speak to you." Tae winces and looks down at his feet, nodding.

. I shouldn't have said that. 

When he calls me that I just...I can't control myself.

It hurts to be near you, Taehyung...

"I'd hate me too," Tae is staring holes into the back of Jungkook's head as he talks to himself. "I just want you to know you mean a lot to me. Even if you never accept my apology, I would do anything and everything in my power just to see you smile again. Call me desperate, but pride isn't something I'm concerned about anymore."

Jungkook stifles a laugh and rotates his body to face Taehyung. "Really now? Anything at all?"

"Anything. I owe you that much and so much more." Taehyung declares this with no hesitation. The voice in the back of his head that normally keeps him from telling the truth is gone now, permanently to his relief. Though he's confused when Jungkook begins crawling closer to him, closer until he has no sense of personal space and his face turns pink. He can feel Jungkook's warmth radiating from him and smell the spearmint in his mouth when it opens. He follows his strong jawline that leads to that chiseled face he adores so much. Taehyung is dizzy with every thought of Jungkook, and his eyes settle on Jungkook's lips when he's about to speak. Jungkook takes him delicately by the chin and the slightly-calloused thumbs turn to feathers on his skin as Taehyung turns to putty in the boy's hands.

"There's only one thing I want from you," Jungkook is coming closer, until he connects the bridge of his nose to Taehyung's own. Tae can hardly muster out a reply because he's so out of touch with reality and at Jungkook's mercy. "Yes, I'll do anything..."

" off." Jungkook's soft expression doesn't leave his face. Rather, his eyes darken and his tone intensifies. There's so much bitterness in his words that Taehyung sharply inhales when he says it, like he's been stabbed and bled out like a swine. "I want you to never speak to me again. I want you to forget about me, like you forgot how much you made me suffer. Like you did for twelve lonely years of my life. I hate you, Taehyung."

No...that's not what I meant.

I'm angry, Taehyung. You know you're not supposed to listen when someone's mad..

He can see the world crumbling in Taehyung's pupils as he slowly shakes his head with whispered repetitions of "No" under his breath. Jungkook rises from his feet and faces the door again, patiently waiting for someone to come and let them out while Taehyung suffers behind him. "I can't do that. I won't."

Jungkook an eyebrow, turning to look at what Tae is going on about. "You said anyth--"

"Not that. It's impossible." Taehyung grabs the iron shelf beside him to help him to his feet, and there's a reason the incessant wobbling alarms Jungkook. "Taehyung, don't touch that.."

The DVD player on the top shelf scoots dangerously close to the edge when Taehyung holds onto the shelf. So close that he doesn't realize when it falls off the edge completely.

"I can't leave you alone, Kook. I'm falling in lo--" Tae is so close, so close to being completely vulnerable in front of Jungkook before the large piece of machinery clubs him in the head. He sways slightly, holding his head in pain before collapsing to the ground. Jungkook rushes over to his body, touching his face and all over him feverishly. "Taehyung?! Taehyung are you okay? Tae, stop ing around!"  Taehyung is trying desperately to open his eyes but they keep failing on him and closing again his will. "You don't have to touch me.."

Is it because I said I hated him?

I'm such an . 

"Stop it, you're hurt." Jungkook's heart almost stops when a thick line of blood trickles down Tae's forehead. He scrambles for something to stop the bleeding, expletives raining from his lips like water. "Tae you have to keep your eyes open. Listen to my voice," Jungkook rips his tie off and ties the plaid handkerchief from his pocket around Tae's head, being especially gentle while handling him. "see? You're okay. When we get out I'll take you to the nurse and--"

Jungkook stops rambling when he notices Taehyung isn't responding to anything he's saying. He holds Tae's face in his hands and his eyes are closed, his body limp. "Don't do that. Stop doing that," He's darting around and begging Taehyung to wake up to no avail.  "I don't hate you, I take it all back. Tell me what you were going to say, please..baby I--" Jungkook bites his lip but it's too late for him to swallow up the endearing name he just called Taehyung out of nowhere.

That's not what I meant.

I meant...Taehyung...

He has no time to process how it happened or why because within seconds the door swings open to a frustrated Yoongi.

"Hey dickhead, I told you not to go and lock yourself in here!" Yoongi pauses when he sees Taehyung in Jungkook's arms and he's one breath short of hyperventilating, Taehyung's face repeatedly and mumbling to himself. "Oh ."

"He needs to go to the infirmary right now," Jungkook hooks an arm under Tae's knees and one under his back and he's out the door, completely walking around Yoongi's jaw on the floor. "If you're coming then come on." He doesn't wait for him at all but Yoongi follows closely behind him nonetheless, wondering what on earth happened.

Little does Jungkook know, Taehyung is diving in and out of consciousness.

Taehyung just happened to dive in when Jungkook called him that sweet, gentle "Baby."

♫♫♫♫♫♫♫

"I swear to god it's like we're in a drama. We've been to the hospital twice now in the same school year!" Jimin whines, hanging his head over the chair in the waiting room. Jungkook rolls his eyes while he rubs his temples in circular motions and Yoongi gives him a reassuring pat on the back. "This isn't even a hospital, Jimin. It's a school infirmary."

"Same thing," Jimin pouts and rolls out a candy bar, frantically trying to wrestle it open. "He's got enough head trauma enough as it is, that's what got him into this mess."

Jungkook diverts his attention to Jimin. "What mess?"

"Oh! U-Um..you know, getting locked in and everything."

"Jimin," Jungkook narrows his eyes, accusing Jimin of thinking he was born yesterday. "You knew?"

"Well I...kinda."

"Unbelievable." Jungkook frowns and walks away, trying his best not to break anything on his way to Taehyung's room.

Jimin slumps back in his seat and sighs, still struggling with the menacing wrapper. Yoongi is slowly growing tired of watching him fumble with it next to him. He grabs the candy and tears it open with his teeth, hands it back to Jimin and returns to staring forward, expressionless. Jimin doesn't move and feels the shyness creeping up his spine when Yoongi suddenly turns to him again. "What? You don't want it?"

"Its not that I...thank you." Jimin smiles weakly and Yoongi an eyebrow in response. "What's with you?"

"Nothing. I'm just tired and worried, that's all."

Yoongi groans knowingly, leaning back in his chair and craning his neck towards the younger boy. "I get it. It isn't easy to take on an administrative work load like Taehyung's and live to see the light of day in the morning. You're screwed even more now, huh?"

Jimin is able to laugh despite his sour mood and weak knees, but the reminder of how much work he has to do gets him anxious again. "I don't know how he does it. I need a break already."

"In that case, how does coffee tomorrow at six sound? If you're free that is--"

"Yes!! Yes..I'm free." Jimin almost jumps out of his seat to throw his reply out of the nearest window. Yoongi flashes him a small smile before getting up and shoving his hands in his pockets. "Cool. I have to get back to the studio, but hopefully I see you tomorrow. Here's my number," Yoongi takes Jimin's hand and scribbles some sloppy numbers on it that are barely legible, though Jimin is too enchanted to care. "see ya Jiminnie. Tell Tae I said get well."

"He called me--oh god, I'm never washing my hands again." Jimin clutches his phone, sliding down the chair and onto the floor in bliss.

♫♫♫♫♫♫♫

Jungkook strolls the hallway to Taehyung's room, silently hoping he's asleep so he can have some time to cool down. In a fraction of a second he's gone from hating Taehyung to going halfway insane regarding his well-being, and he despises every minute of it. Despite him being extremely angry with his childhood friend, he can't feel anything but his heart pounding out of his chest. Jungkook glances at his watch, sighing. He's late for dinner.

He runs a hand through his hair thinking about how he's going to deal with his father's disapproval later on, but puts it out of his mind when he nudges the door open and Taehyung isn't in his bed.

What??

"Nurse Kim, where is Taehyung?" Jungkook questions a tall woman that is filling syringes nearby with a soft smile.

"He left not too long ago, is everything okay?"

Left??

How does someone with a brain injury just leave?

"Left? He can't just leave. T-That's...a problem," Jungkook is panicking and speaking with his hands and he's hard to follow because he's talking so fast. She nods back as she tries to follow him, ultimately just staring at his hands flailing about. "a DVD player fell on his head you see, from a great distance and he already has a concussion. So he's not exactly all the way there you know? He doesn't remember things and he's been very dependent on me and others since he was a child. I-I..can't just leave him alone, he can't just leave, he can't go anywhere nurse--" 

Jungkook realizes he's breaking down over the smallest thing. The smallest thing that should mean nothing after what Taehyung did to him, the smallest thing that shouldn't effect him at all is digging it's way through him. There's a familiar pain in his chest that he always associated with Taehyung-- that  piercing feeling like something was tearing through his pericardium--just dying to eat his heart out.

I can't leave him alone.

I need to tie his shoes, and hold his hand when crossing the street, and check for monsters under his bed.

He needs me...

"Jungkook, I need you to relax. He was speaking coherently, he only needed a few stitches. He didn't suffer any brain damage at all. He's the one who insisted on leaving."

Jungkook is shaking as he stares into space and collapses in a chair. "He was talking? How? He was just unconscious..."

"Yes," she finally exhales, recovering from Jungkook's episode. "We did a scan and he's suffered no more damage than he had before. It's common to black out after a blow to the head, but it's just a flesh wound. Tell your friend to take a rest from school until his stitches are ready to come out." She waves him off with a smile, a low-key indication for him to get his disoriented out of the infirmary before he scares someone else away.

Jungkook is hurrying out of the infirmary when a hand stops him and spins him around to a pouty Jimin. "You can't just leave me here!"

Kook shakes his head. "My bad Minnie. I forgot you were here." Jimin cuts his eyes at his blunt honesty. "Where's Tae? His mom just cursed me out over the phone. If I don't produce a Taehyung in five minutes my is grass."

"He left," Jimin almost chokes on his Take 5 bar and Jungkook scrambles to an explanation before Jimin can yell at him. "but he's okay! He just got stitches s-so..he's not dead or anything--"

"Kook!"

"I'm sorry! What I meant was he just needs to rest for a few days so the wound can heal and such!"

Jimin whines. "Now I have to find a new judge for the bachelor's auction. Oh well, I suppose it can't be helped."

Jungkook is confused now, turning to Jimin. "Why not? Isn't he a judge?"

"He isn't allowed to be anything. Taehyung got suspended, and he voluntarily resigned from the student council. That means he forfeits all school activities, any honors he received, and all positions withheld in school clubs." Jimin states like he's reading out of the student handbook, and for a boy with straight A's Jungkook proves to be clueless once again.

"Why would he do that?"

Jimin throws his hands in the air, defeated. "Damn, for an honors kid you sure are a noodlehead. Figure it out, put two and two together. He feels bad."

Jungkook looks dumbfounded, still stuck in utter confusion. He remains firm regardless, standing by his pride. "He only feels bad because he was wrong the entire time."

"Or," Jimin grins and leans in close. "He's genuinely a good person who couldn't let go of a grudge until he found out the truth? Either that or he's ridiculously, hopelessly, blindly in lo--"

Jimin's cellphone goes off again and he pauses in the middle of his sentence just as Jungkook was anticipating the next few syllables. "What?"

"It's Tae's mom. I should take this." Jimin swipes his thumb on the screen only to hear screaming coming from the phone.

"Where is my son?!"

"Ms. Kim, please calm down--"

"Calm down? Park Jimin, I will wrap your esophagus around your head and wear you like boa if you don't find my baby right this instant. Do you understand?" The line goes dead and Jimin shivers. "Jungkook..." 

"I know, I know! He's probably nearby if he just left. I think I know where he might be." Jimin glares at Jungkook as if that's supposed to comfort him in any way possible. He grabs Jungkook by the sleeve and drags him outside, and mounts his bike. "I'm going to Tae's place to explain this mess, and you're going to find him. I know Taehyung's an asshat for what happened and you guys aren't on good terms but..he's my asshat. Get him home safely."

Jungkook nods and sprints off into the direction of the Big Wise Tree, hoping his teenage boy intuition would not fail him another day.

♫♫♫♫♫♫♫

As afternoon merges into evening, the winds in the neighborhood grow more and more brisk. Despite having a gash in his head and being slightly loopy from strong pain medication, Taehyung is enjoying a nice stroll in the winter winds. He approaches the fence he knows all too well and kicks off his Converse sneakers to climb. As soon as he places one foot in the fencing, an unfurled piece of iron hooks onto his bandages and pulls. In an effort to adjust his bandages, Taehyung wobbles whiles he balances himself with one hand and picks at gauze with the other.

There's no point in trying however, because minutes later  aggressive hands are grabbing Taehyung by the waist and pulling him back on the ground. He peers up to the owner of the hands, and all he can see his Jungkook's breathless figure, and all his sweat glistening in the sunset. "Jungkook.."

"What the hell are you doing?" Jungkook has his hand fastened on Tae's wrist to prevent him from running away. "Why didn't you reply to any of my messages?"

"You told me not to speak to you, so I didn't." Taehyung is frowning his usual sassy frown and Jungkook sighs while he softens his grip. "I'm taking you home. Your mom's worried sick about you."

"I'm not a damsel in distress. I can take care of myself. Why do you care anyway? You hate me." Jungkook is rolling his eyes again because he certainly didn't come here for Taehyung's sass and he still had every right to be angry. "I was upset, Tae. Extremely upset. I said things I shouldn't have, I get it. You can stop using my words against me now." Jungkook doesn't give him a chance to reply and tugs on his wrist to pull him in the opposite direction. When Taehyung wrenches his arm away from him Jungkook stares at him incredulously. 

"Come on, Tae. I don't have time for this."

"Then why are you here? Why waste time on someone you hate? I'm fine,  I didn't need your help in the first place." Jungkook rolls his tongue in his cheek and it's clear to Tae that his patience is thinning. "Are you done? I got it, you were rebellious and ran away. Cool. Now it's time for you to take your back home." 

"You don't need to worry about me, I won't speak to you anymore. Wish granted." Taehyung turns around to storm off once again, but Jungkook's protesting hands grab him by the arm for the last time. "Baby, will you stop being such a ing child and listen for once?"
 

Jungkook pauses, wondering why Taehyung is staring at him. He's wondering why his cheeks are slowly building to the shade of strawberry milk, and he realizes his error, awkwardly clearing his throat.

"Tae--"

"What did you just say?"

"Nothing," Jungkook turns his back and his throat goes dry. "I didn't say anything."

"I'm pretty sure you did."

"Drop it, now. We're leaving." Jungkook tries to maintain his straight face of authority while he drags Taehyung back to the big hill down to the neighborhood. Taehyung's steps are faltering and he's lulling behind when Jungkook notices he can't keep up, a probable effect of the medication. "Here, get on my back."

"I don't need you carry me. I have legs." Taehyung defiantly proves his so called legs are reliable when he steps forward and trips over a collection of rocks as Jungkook sighs down at him. He hoists him up and over his shoulder and begins walking down the path, drowning out Taehyung's endless complaining. "Put me down now!"

"I'll put you down when you want to behave and be carried properly." Jungkook is expressionless and Taehyung groans before calming down. "Fine."

He sets him on his feet and Taehyung rounds his back, wrapping arms around Jungkook's neck. Kook curls his hands under Tae's knees to secure his legs and he begins walking the trail without saying a word.

If Taehyung didn't know any better, he'd assume that getting hit in the head improved his memory tenfold. He feels nostalgia riding on Jungkook's back like this, and before he knows it he's nestled into Jungkook's hair and fast asleep. Jungkook frowns when he hears him softly snoring because he's confident, very confident that he hates Kim Taehyung with all of his heart and soul.

And he would keep it that way.

♫♫♫♫♫♫♫

"Get up, Tae. We're here." Taehyung is still asleep despite Jungkook's attempts, so the boy opts to simply drop him on the sidewalk and walk across the street nonchalantly.

"That's how you treat an injured person? Some doctor you are." Tae mumbles under his breath while Jungkook disappears into his house, slamming the door and leaving Taehyung to his thoughts.

Jungkook walks into the house and kicks off his boots, startled by the silence in the house. "Mom? I'm home," he wanders around before finding his mother in the kitchen. "sorry I'm late. I had to do some stuff after school." She sends a forced smile his way before nudging him towards the dining room. "Go and greet your father. He's been waiting for you."

He reluctantly drags himself to the dining room to see a olive-skinned older man sitting at the table. His hair his dusted with salt and pepper and the bags under his eyes reflect a 9 to 5 job that has the life out of him. The man sitting next to him is much younger, falling somewhere in his late twenties. His hair is jet black and cut in thick layers that fall perfectly to frame his face. His brown eyes twinkle when he smiles, similar to his baby brother's. When Jungkook enters the room, both men greet him with a smile. "Baby bro, we've been waiting eons for you!" He's overjoyed when Jungkook smashes into him, crushing him into a hug. "I know, I'm sorry. It's been too long Yugyeom."

Jungkook's grin falls slightly when he sees his father looking at him, a forced smile on his lips. "Dad." He greets him with a nod to which he reciprocates. "Son. I trust you've been well. Congratulations on your scholarship, your father is very proud of you." Jungkook's throat goes dry and his heart thumps in his chest. He smiles and nods before sitting next to his brother to avoid further conversation before dinner is served. 

His mother comes out of the kitchen, settling a large pot of stew in the center of the table with four rice bowls surrounding it. 'Let's dig in and eat well." Jungkook quickly dispatches his chopsticks and guns for the beef in the stew, knowing damn well Yugyeom made a habit of stealing all the meat in the soup when they were kids. "Aigoo. You know me too well, I'll have to come up with a better technique." Jungkook grins and stuffs his face with rice as his mother finally joins them at the table.

"I hear you're doing great things, Jungkook. SNU is a great school for business majors." Jungkook tries to camouflage the frown that's pulling at his cheeks. Yugyeom sends him a knowing stare and nudges him under the table. "Jungkook is going into medicine, dad. He's really good at biology,aside from every other subject."

"Well that's no good," His father is smiling as if he means well, despite completely disregarding Jungkook's wishes. "He has to take over the accounting firm. He's going to carry the family legacy, it's only natural."

"What if I don't," Jungkook has since stopped chewing, and his mother shoots him a look that he effectively ignored. "would that be so bad? I want to help sick people, not sit in a high rise building and drown in a computer screen. I'd be miserable for the rest of my life."

'Listen to me, son. There's no power in medicine. In business there's a corporate ladder, and you have the luxury of inheriting my position as President. Think of all the opportunities you could--"

"I lost the scholarship." The room gets quiet once Jungkook blurts out his retort, and his father looks mortified. Yugyeom whispers reassuringly in his ear but he ignores him. "You what?"

"Unforeseen circumstances. I don't have a chance getting in now. Not only can I not inherit your stupid company, but I also can't go to medical school. I bet that makes you feel just peachy, doesn't it?" Jungkook wipes his mouth and rises from the table while his father follows his movements. "Jungkook, what on earth are you saying?"

"When mom told you I was going to a school full of bigwigs you couldn't stop calling. You only show up when I have games and award ceremonies. Not any of my birthdays, not even Christmas. You're a sad excuse for a man and a father. You can't support my life choices because it's not what you want? You're supposed to want nothing but your child's happiness!"

"How dare you speak to your father like this. Do you have any manners at all?"

"You're not my father. I only mean something to you when I'm bowing down to you and taking your reigns. I tried to be strong for mom but I just can't do it."

Jungkook storms off to the front door and ties his boots on, grabbing his hoodie and wallet. "Where do you think you're going?!" His father is fuming, following his every footstep.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sorry I couldn't be your proud son."

With that, Jungkook slams the door and disappears into the night.

♫♫♫♫♫♫♫

Taehyung is indulging in his favorite book when he hears yelling coming from across the street. Climbing up to his bedroom window, he parts the curtains and hears a door slam loudly. He can see someone leaving Jungkook's house in an over-sized hoodie. He shrugs it off, getting up and looking for some clean socks. His mother comes in seconds later with hands on her hips. "Don't tell me you're going to work."

"Mom I'm really okay, seriously. It doesn't even hurt anymore." 

She narrows her eyes and suspects he's lying. "Why are you picking up extra hours anyway?"

Tae smiles back at her, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm saving up for something."

She gives up, shrugging at her hard-headed son. "Just be careful. I'm leaving for the graveyard shift at the hospital. Dinner is in the fridge." She blows him a kiss before turning to leave, but he stops her. "Do you know if any of the doctors on your shift need an extra hand? Like...a clinical internship, if you will."

His mother her head to the side, pondering. "The only internships I know of take place in the maternity and children's wing. Those are for aspiring college students though, it's extremely competitive."

"That's perfect. I'm just asking for a friend. I'm sure he can handle it. Put in a good word for me?" His mother smiles and kisses his cheek.

"I'll see what I can do."

♫♫♫♫♫♫♫

Taehyung always tries to keep himself busy during the last ten minutes of his shift. He knows good and well that if his boss supervised the night shift he would have his if he didn't rearrange every candy bar, every lighter and every antacid package. It helps to daydream while he does his work though, and sooner or later his brain is full of Jungkook again.

He called me baby..

But why? Did he think I was someone else? Maybe he was thinking about his ex.

That had to be it, because there was no way in hell Jungkook could even remotely like him after what he did. Taehyung knows now that Jungkook hates him, but he hates himself even more for hating Jungkook for saying he hates him.

For that logic alone, he needed a bottle of soju.

The bell rings on the door and someone is approaching the counter rapidly, much to Taehyung's confusion. He drops the ten packs of gum in his hands and slides through the door behind the register. "We close in five minutes, just so you--"

"Give me a pack of Firelights. 100's." The man fishes in his wallet and avoids eye contact with him. "Do you have ID, sir?"

"I have pubic hair and I shave. Isn't that enough ID for you?" Taehyung clears his throat awkwardly, cringing internally. "Um...I'm afraid not."

"This is some bull, I swear.." The man digs around his wallet and slaps a ID card on the counter. "There."

Tae takes one glace at it before he realizes the rude customer is Jungkook. " You do know the age limit is 18 in the city, not here? You shouldn't even be smoking."

"Mind your own business." Jungkook looks stressed and annoyed, snatching his card back. "Are you going to sell them to me or not?"

"No. I could get into a lot of trouble for that."

"Fine, it. I'll get them somewhere else." Jungkook stomps off before he can say anything else, and Taehyung furrows his eyebrows in disbelief. "What the hell was his problem...?" He shakes it off when he realizes it's ten o' clock, and collects his belongings in his knapsack. He walks outside and pushes down the gate, preparing to lock the store up.

Though he doesn't get any further before there's the cold, hard muzzle of a gun pressing into the back of his head and an unfamiliar voice accompanying it.

"Why don't you go ahead and open up that door again for me?"

♫♫♫♫♫♫♫

Yes I know this chapter is extremely ridiculously late! I had to force myself to push this one out today in celebration of MAMAMOO's comeback because I'm just so emotional over it~

ALSO. I absolutely CANNOT neglect the fact that this has reached 100 subscribers! Yay! I certainly didn't think anyone would click on this story so I'm very surprised. I appreciate every last one of you so much.

Lastly and as always, if you loved this chapter you can always drop me a comment and let me know how you felt about it! I love feedback from my readers more than anything, especially my silent ones.

I'll see you in the next one! xoxo